Sustainability: Visualized

Abstract

When the goal is to help audiences understand social and environmental sustainability data, communicating the context is of high importance. Data that are designed to tell a story can create a strong connection between high-level, abstract sustainability concepts and the daily, individual actions of consumers. This article outlines the challenges and opportunities that the topic presents and offers key practices in the visualization of sustainability data: Starting with the individual, layering information, presenting positively, involving emotions, letting audiences make their own decisions, enabling interaction, and providing access to supporting data. Specific experiences from a variety of the author’s own projects illustrate these points.